


iterations

by corsairspade



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Avatar & Benders Setting, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Avatar Akira Kurusu, Avatar Protagonist, Bending (Avatar), Fire Lord Shido, Gen, Modern Era, Spoilers, The AU no one asked for, obligatory avatar AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-12
Updated: 2019-08-12
Packaged: 2020-08-19 20:23:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20215747
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/corsairspade/pseuds/corsairspade
Summary: Akira Kurusu is the Avatar. Akira Kurusu is also the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Heart.And while his past lives can be incredibly useful, (Yes, Arsene, that means you, no need to be so chuffed.) Akira Kurusu is also sort of fed up with this whole "fate" thing.





	iterations

Our story ends with a breath of air. 

Joker’s eyes are blown wide. Arsene is gone and in his place, Raava blazes in the sky, bright light illuminating the blood of Skull’s broken nose and Queen’s busted fists. Noir’s feet are bruised from bending. Fox sways on his feet, the Necronomicon encasing Oracle is covered in dents. Mona is barely upright and Panther is so pale, she looks like a sheet of paper.

Crow is… well. We’ll get to that.

Vaatu’s form shudders and falls to pieces.

But that’s not how our story starts. No, the story starts with a boy who can flirt with the wind as it ruffles his hair, who can spend the longest out of any of his friends underwater. Who always seems to jump the highest and float down to the ground.

Our story begins with Akira Kurusu, as he punches a fire nation general in the face.

The ensuing court case is closed almost as quickly as it is opened. Akira’s parents berate him, but he can’t seem to care, still in shock of the whirlwind of events. He’s even more shocked when he’s told he’s to be sent to the capital. 

His mother looks at him with pity in her eyes, and it makes him sick.

“Akira, sweetheart, it’s only for a year. And maybe in the capital, you can find a teacher for your airbending?”

It’s easier to tell that her saccharine tone is fake than it is to blink. Still, at least she cares enough to fake caring about this. Akira’s father just stares impassively. All Akira wants to do under that steely gaze is cower and sob, but he knows that he can’t. He’s packed for the capital within a day.

* * *

As he walks through the crowded streets of the capital, his attention is drawn away by children bending rocks at each other. A mother admonishes her daughter for tripping another girl, but her voice is gentle. A man lights his cigarette with flames licking across his fingers. The smoke carries into Akira’s lungs and he coughs slightly. Soldiers dressed in formal uniforms walk in practiced loops around the city, the badges on their chests identifying them as firebenders.

He tries to find his map app, but his service is shoddy. His eye is drawn to a red app, with an eye decal on it. He can’t remember downloading it. Whatever. He deletes it.

He’s searching for a coffee shop- Leblanc, he’s pretty sure. The name is distinctly not fire nation, so Akira almost kicks himself for missing it on his first walkthrough of the suburb of Yongen. 

He pushes open the door and there’s a soft jingle of a bell. Inside are two older customers and a middle-aged man, doing a crossword, while twisting his fingers in a circle. Akira is pretty sure if he looked at the cup next to him, the coffee inside would be spinning softly. A waterbender then. There’s a brief conversation between the man and the customers over something about a bus- Akira is barely paying attention, a ringing in his ears. As they leave, the manager slumps against the counter. 

“Four hours for a single cup of joe.” 

He sounds like he looks, Akira decides- world-weary and serious. The manager looks Akira up and down and he can’t help but feel that the man is staring straight into his soul. 

“So. You’re the guy.”

Akira shifts from side to side, barely forcing the words out as he tries his best not to fidget. 

“Is Sakura-san here?” 

The man smiles, almost imperceptibly. 

“...Yeah. I’m Sojiro Sakura. You’ll be in my custody over the next year. I was wondering what sort of unruly kid would show up. But you’re the one, huh?” 

The question is obviously rhetorical, so Akira stays respectfully silent, letting the man speak. No need to make a bad impression, he reminds himself. You’ve already got assault on your shoulders. Don’t add rude to the mix.

“Have you been told? A customer of mine and your parents know each other and- Well. Not that that matters. Follow me.”

Quiet, Akira reminds himself. Not a word. Be quiet and unassuming. Not a threat, or a nuisance. 

The room he’s lead to is more like a storage area than a bedroom. It’s filled with dust that almost immediately fills his lungs. Trash covers the floor. There’s a dying plant in the corner and the bed tucked by the window looks like something out of a prison.

Quiet, Akira reminds himself. Be thankful. But something on his face must display his displeasure, because Sakura-san arches an eyebrow, his face steely. 

“You look like you wanna say something.”

Think Akira, think. No social faux pas. You are going to be refined. Quiet. Polite. 

“...It’s big.”

Sakura-san clearly doesn’t buy it, but thankfully, he drops it, hands dropping into his pockets. 

“It’s up to you to clean up the rest. I’ll be leaving after I lock up each day. You’ll be alone at night, but don’t do anything stupid, like using that fancy wind of yours in public. I don’t care if you make a breeze here, but if you violate the terms of your probation, or cause trouble, I’ll throw you out, got it?” 

Akira nods. Already, his airbending feels quashed, sullen, as if it grieves the loss of being able to play outside- to ruffle hair and push around branches. 

“Now then… I got the gist of your situation. You protected some woman from a man forcing himself on her, he got injured, then sued you. Right? That’s what you get for sticking your nose in a matter between two adults. You did injure him, yeah?”

Akira has to concentrate on his breathing to prevent himself from flinching. Don’t react. Calm, collected. Quiet. 

“...And now you’ve got a criminal record, you were expelled from your high school. The courts ordered you to transfer and move out here, which your parents also approved. In other words, they got rid of you. For being a pain in the ass.”

Spirits be- Akira has to bite the inside of his cheek to stop his hands from balling into fists, or his eyes starting to water.

“It’s best you don’t talk about anything unnecessary. I am in the restaurant business, you know. And being a water bender in the fire nation capital is still hard to do. Your behavior will reflect on me. So don’t screw up. Behave yourself for the year. If nothing happens, your probation will be lifted.”

Akira keeps his mouth shut, and instead bows respectfully. The room is spinning. He can feel his chest tightening. 

But Sakura-san seems to appreciate it, because he wipes his hands on his apron and stands up straighter.

“We’ll be going to Shujin tomorrow. We’ll introduce ourselves properly to the staff there. There’s rarely a place that will accept someone like you, you know. What a waste of my Sunday.”

The conversation seems to be over. Sakura-san begins to tread down the stairs. Akira is made very aware that he has no door. As the man is about to leave, he glances over his shoulder.

“Your luggage arrived earlier- I put it over there.”

And then he’s gone.

* * *

  
Akira cleans for three hours straight. The dust is blown out the window by a gust of wind. Everything gets tucked away carefully. His hands have three splinters in them. He’s sitting on his bed, pulling them out, when Sakura-san comes back.

He looks around, the picture of pleased surprise. He nods at Akira and the boy can’t help but feel special from the affirmation. He can do this. He will do this. 

Sakura-san tells him to go to bed and trots back downstairs. Akira hears the ring of the door opening and the click of a lock as Sakura-san closes up. It’s then that the exhaustion truly hits him, and he shucks his clothes to pull on his pajamas. 

His mind wanders slowly. The drunk man, the frightened woman. He’s drawn from his reverie by the ping of his phone. He sluggishly turns it on. The app with the red eye draws his gaze.

Didn’t he delete that? Must not have. He deletes it again, before putting the phone back on charge. His eyelids grow heavy. 

* * *

He wakes up to the sound of chains clanking.

Chains?

The walls around him are blue velvet. He’s inside a… Cell? Akira sits up slowly. There are manacles on his wrists. He’s lucid dreaming. That must be it. His head is pounding. Holding it in his hands, he twists towards the source of light- and the two tiny girls standing in front of the bars. Each has an eyepatch and a warden’s uniform. 

The stress must be getting to him, he decides. 

He takes a step forward to study the fever dream his subconscious has cooked up, and is surprised when it takes a huge amount of effort. He turns around and takes in the ball and chain around one ankle.

He stumbles to the bars, and when he does, the two girls peel away and he’s startled to see… something sitting at a desk. Akira is brought back to his nanny’s stories of spirits who spin tales to trap helpless travelers. The thing- the man? It’s vaguely humanoid. His nose is unnaturally long and the pointed ears and far too pronounced smile doesn’t help either. Gloved hands are clasped together daintily. 

Akira is ready to wake up now, please.

And then the thing talks.

“Avatar… Welcome to my velvet room.”

Akira jerks back. Avatar?

This is his dream, damn it! He pulls on the bars, but nothing happens. 

The twin with buns sneers at him, and it’s odd to see on such a young face. 

“So you’ve come to, inmate.”

Her voice is nasally and she scowls at him. Akira decides that her glare is thousands of times more effective than Sakura-san’s. He’s about to respond when the other twin, with her hair in braids, begins to speak as well, as if continuing the other girl’s speech. Her voice is soft- dreamy.

“The you in reality is currently fast asleep. You are only experiencing this as a dream.”

Alright, so apparently Akira’s subconscious is self-aware. That’s… good?

The first girl speaks again, sharp words to suit her sharp tongue.

“You’re in the presence of our master. Stand up straight!”

Akira glances at the thing again. Master? What a crazy dream. He’s baffled, eyebrows furrowed.

“Welcome. I am truly delighted to make your acquaintance, Avatar. This is the velvet room of the spirit world- This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room that only those who are gifted with the avatar spirit may enter. I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well. I summoned you here to speak of important matters. It involves your life and destiny, Avatar.”

Akira decides that he’s had enough of this. He yanks on the door again, annoyance flashing over his face. 

“Let me out!”

He pulls and pulls, annoyance turning to anger. He wants to wake up. He pulls again and the brash twin smacks her baton against the bars.

“Know your place, Inmate! Who do you think you’re talking to!”

He jerks away from the bars- not because of the girl’s anger or blow, but because the bars are red hot and his palms sting. What is this?

Igor tilts his head in what Akira assumes in consideration. 

“Still, this is a surprise. The state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think a prison would appear. You truly are a "prisoner" of fate. In the near future, there is no mistake that ruin awaits you.”

Akira tentatively closes his hands around the bars again. He scoffs and looks around again.

“Are you kidding me?”

All Igor does is smile, far too many teeth in a far too wide smear across his face. He laughs softly, his deep voice resonating in Akira’s bones. 

“Worry not. There is a means to oppose such a fate, young Avatar. You must be rehabilitated. Rehabilitated towards freedom. That is your only means to avoid ruin… Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the spirit world?”

Akira blinks his eyes, screwing them closed and open a few times, trying to clear the headache that’s been waxing and waning through his mind.

“Wait, what?”

Igor seems to take that as his answer and panic flashes through Akira’s mind, before he relaxes. Just a dream. The stress is getting to him.

“You didn’t decline, hm? Very well, that is enough. Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation.”

The twin wardens turn to face Akira and he takes a moment to take in their odd appearances- the haunting yellow eyes, the white hair, clearly not dyed. 

Igor continues to speak, drawing Akira’s gaze back to his startling features. 

“Ah, pardon me for not introducing the others. To your right is Caroline; to your left is Justine. They serve as wardens here.”

The girl with buns, who Akira has now identified as Caroline makes a displeased noise, her gloved hands clutched behind her back.

“Try and struggle all you’d like, Avatar!”

Justine- who Akira has decided is far easier to listen to- continues to the actual point. Akira silently thanks his subconscious for providing at least one sensible character in this dream. 

“The duty of wardens is to protect inmates. We are also your collaborators. That is, if you remain obedient.”

Igor cuts in, leaning back in his desk chair. Akira can see glimpses of shined black shoes. 

“I shall explain the roles of these two at another occasion. It seems the night is waning… It is almost time. Take your time to slowly come to understand this place. We will surely meet again, eventually.”

He waves his hand dismissively.

Caroline turns to address Akira again, baton swinging side to side behind her, betraying childish fidgeting. 

“Time’s up. Now hurry up and go back to sleep.”

Exhaustion hits Akira like a punch and his vision goes black.

* * *

Akira sits up in bed. He looks around. No chains. No twin wardens. The walls are the comforting wood and plaster of Leblanc. 

What a strange dream. He can recall all of it in such detail- the feel of the cold steel of the manacles on his wrists, the clang of Caroline’s baton against the bars. 

The red hot metal that burned his palms.

Avatar. What a crazy idea. The stress of the last month has really gotten to him.

He has to get dressed- Sakura-san is expecting him to go to Shujin today to meet the staff. He pulls on the uniform, the red checks along his pants and the cut of the jacket so very fire nation traditional. 

It’s a good thing he did, apparently, as he hears the ding of Sakura-san open the door and begin to walk up the stairs to his doorless bedroom. The man is apparently dressed up for the meeting. It’s then that Akira realizes that Sakura-san is actually being responsible for him. Tying their reputations together.

It makes the warning words from last night seem less cruel.

“Looks like you’re up. Well then, let’s go introduce ourselves properly to the staff so we can discuss your transfer. Shujin is in the Aoyama district. It’ll cost you a bit to ride the train there, and the route transfers are a pain. I’ll drive you there, but just for today. Let’s go.”

Sakura-san walks out, muttering something about his front seat, but Akira doesn’t quite catch it. The drive is in silence. 

By the time they arrive at the imposing building, Akira is so nervous, he’s forgotten all about the dream. His new guardian stops him by the gates quickly, meeting his eyes with a serious expression. 

“Do me a favor and behave yourself, alright? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t care what happens to you. Just don’t cause me any trouble.”

And then they’re inside. Akira follows Sakura-san quietly and respectfully, and when they meet up with the principal and his new homeroom teacher, Akira remembers his new motto. Stay quiet. He speaks only when spoken to, polite and respectful. Eventually, Sakura-san is signing the last of the papers, when Principal Kobayakawa addresses Akira directly. 

“To reiterate, just so we’re clear, you will immediately be expelled if you cause any problems. Honestly, I hesitated on accepting someone like you, but there were a few circumstances on our side… You might have done a variety of things in hiding in your hometown, but you will behave yourself here. We are implementing a strict no-bending rule for you here. Not even in sports class, am I understood? If you are thrown out of our school, there will be no place for you to go. Keep that in mind.”

He gestures to the young female teacher standing next to him, making Akira uncomfortably aware of the principal's lack of neck, the folds of fat making it seem like his head swiveled like it was on a ball.

“This is the teacher in charge of your class.”

The woman gives the most exhausted smile Akira has ever seen and introduces herself.

“I’m Sadayo Kawakami. Here’s your student ID.”

She slides the ID across the table to Akira, and he picks it up gingerly. His status as an airbender is emblazoned next to his name. 

“Be sure to read the school rules. Any violations will send you straight to the guidance office. And, if by chance, you cause any problems, I won’t be able to protect you at all… That _ is _ your promise, yes, Principal Kobayakawa?”

The principal makes an affirmative noise. Akira is hypnotized by the way his face moves as he speaks.

“He is responsible for all his actions.”

Kawakami’s exhausted smile drops as she rubs her arm awkwardly. 

“But really though, why me..? There should have been better candidates.”

Akira can’t show how much that stings. Stay quiet, he repeats in his mind, keeping his face neutrally blank, but interested enough in the proceedings. Kobayakawa adds to the stinging wound in his chest as he commiserates with Kawakami.

“It was a sudden transfer, and your class was the only one with an opening.”

Sakura-san is done with the paperwork, and before Akira has to endure anymore stinging offhand comments, addresses the principal.

“If you’re done explaining things, mind if we get going? I got a store to get back to.”

Sakura-san and Kobayakawa have a brief back and forth, reminding Akira further to be on his best behavior and to avoid bending in any sort of public area. Kawakami tells Akira to meet her in the faculty office tomorrow and it’s done. Akira faithfully follows Sakura-san out.

They pause in the hallway and Sakura looks Akira up and down.

“They’re treating you like some kinda nuisance. I guess that’s what it means to have a criminal record. Turns out your past follows you wherever you go.”

Akira stares. That was… almost like his new guardian disapproved of how the principal treated him.

Then Sakura’s eyes harden and he purses his lips together.

“By the way… If you get expelled now, I won’t hesitate to kick you out. Got it?”

Akira affirms that he will try his very best. Sakura-san hums appreciatively, before sighing.

“School never changes, huh. Come on. We’re going home.”

Akira considers his words as he sits down in the car and they peel away from the sidewalk. Home.

Traffic is horrendous, and they sit in silence, as they inch forward, before it seems to be more than Sakura can take. 

“Traffic’s not moving at all… You’re taking the train, starting tomorrow.”

Akira says nothing, and Sakura plows on.

“... So how was it? The school, I mean. Think you can manage?”

Akira nods once and offers a small smile.

“I have to, don’t I? I’ll manage.”

They sit in silence for a while longer, before Sakura reaches out and turns the radio up, something clearly catching his attention. The noise is filled with static, but it serves its purpose 

“Again,” The newscaster says in his monotone voice. “A subway has derailed at Shibuya station, greatly affecting the timetable all across the-”

Sakura groans, displeasure obvious on his face.

“Another accident? So that’s why it’s so crowded. There’ve been a lot of those recently.”

They reach home after spending the rest of the trip in silence, cold, but not awkward. As they re-enter Leblanc, Sakura grumbles about being unable to open the café, gesturing for Akira to go upstairs. He does so, enjoying being able to stretch his legs.

As he enters his doorless attic, Akira turns to face Sakura, who has been perusing the news about the accidents with a disgruntled look on his face. 

“Talk about gruesome. Eighty people were involved with that train derailing.”

Akira knows this is a lead up to something, so he does what he’s been doing for the entire day. He stays quiet and waits. What he’s surprised to receive, is a diary. 

He nods dutifully as Sakura-san explains that it’s for reporting to his probation officers. Not where he’s going to spill his crazy dreams then. 

Sakura’s phone rings, and he answers it, with more warmth than Akira thought possible. And then he’s gone, leaving Akira alone with his thoughts, a cold attic, and a diary.

Spirits, he can’t wait for this year to be over.  



End file.
